• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, November 13, 2014

What's an ad agency to do when it's had enough bad ideas and it simply can't take it any longer? It invites their employees to do shots and slap each other in the face, of course! As part of its participation in Strategy Magazine's Agency of the Year event in Toronto, Leo Burnett illustrated just what it takes to slap the bad ideas off an agency person's head. It's called Slapshot, and it's "a social experiment designed to spark inspired thinking." Step one: take a shot of liquor which relaxes the person and gets them to let their guard down. Step two: a slap in the face which removes tired and expected ideas from the brain and jolts the person into action with a renewed sense of purpose. Apparently it has worked. Productivity is up 16%, and HR has noted a general decline in employee whining. According to the video, the agency conducted a test of the program at Cannes earlier this year. I can't think of any other place where shots and stupid behavior go hand in hand so well. But if it gets employees to be more creative, it's all good.

My, my. The good, old upfront has become quite fancy in the internet age. Interpublic Group and Millennial Media have signed a year-long global strategic partnership. As part of the agreement, IPG agencies and their clients will be "eligible for greater efficiencies, custom research, access to Millennial Media’s robust and scalable mobile data capabilities," and a first look at the mobile advertising platform’s new products. The partnership -- led by IPG Mediabrands, the global media holding company of Interpublic Group -- includes all IPG creative, digital, marketing services and media agencies. Remember when agencies used to just buy space and time from publishers? Yea, I don't either.

So Mullen is doing something interesting. The agency has teamed with Workbar to launch Wunderbar, a co-working space tailored for ad-tech startups. Explaining the project, Mullen VP Account Director Eric Fulwiler said: "Startups are, by their very nature, the most innovative organizations in any industry, including advertising. They're looking to solve old problems in new, smarter ways. We want to surround ourselves with the most innovative thinkers to help us do the same." Three companies have joined the program. viral video marketing platform ViralGains, managed content distribution platform Reactor Media and influencer marketing firm Mavrck. Mavrck Co-Founder and Chief Revenue Officer Chris Wolfel finds the benefit a two-way street, saying: "We can sit down next to account strategists and say, 'Hey we're thinking about rolling out these three features. Is that something that's actually valuable to you?'" Win, win. 

Rei Inamoto is a well-known name in advertising circles. He's been with AKQA for quite some time, and now he's stepping up. The agency has named Inamoto Chief Creative Officer. Is this role, Inamoto will oversee the agency's global creative activities. Of the promotion, Inamoto said, “With the most remarkable brands as our clients, combined with our extraordinary people, the opportunity to do legendary work is limitless. It’s an incredible honor to be bestowed the torch of creative leadership for our firm globally.” Congratulations, Rei.

advertisement

advertisement